Hogwarts reads The Philosophers Stone
by imafanoftoomanythings
Summary: Yes, it's another reading the Books series. Umbridge is in her office when 5 books appear on her desk about a certain teenager we all know. What secrets will be revealed? How will Hogwarts react to what the Golden Trio have been through? Read to find out! MY FIRST EVER FANFIC SO PLEASE BE NICE : R
1. Chapter 1

Dolores Jane Umbridge sat at her desk in a very foul mood. Just that afternoon she had tried to banish the stupid old Divination teacher from the grounds, when Dumbledore had stepped in and said that she wasn't allowed to. She wasn't allowed to?! Her, Dolores Jane Umbridge, the Hogwarts High Inquisitor and one of the Minister's most trusted employees! And to make matters even worse, he had bought along another Divination teacher to share the role, who was a filthy half-breed! A centaur!

CRACK! Dolores shrieked and fell out of her chair at the unexpected sound. 5 books appeared out of thin air with the sound of Apparation. When nothing else happened, she got up and looked at the top book of the pile. The title read _Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone_! Perfect! She could read this aloud to the school and expose all of the stupid boy's lies for everyone to see! Then, she noticed a note next to the stack of books.

_Dear Professor Umbridge (Hogwarts High Inquisitor),_

_These 5 books have been sent to you from us people in the future. Each book details all of the events that Harry Potter has been in throughout each of his years at Hogwarts – one book for each year. They are the absolute truth about what Harry has been doing in his years at Hogwarts – not one thing is a lie. We require you to read them in front of the whole of Hogwarts in the next week (cancel all classes). All of the teachers must be there to hear the reading too. Also, you must invite the following people for the reading. It cannot proceed without them._

_The entire Weasley family, including Percy_

_Remus Lupin_

_Kingsley Shacklebolt_

_Amelia Bones_

_Minister Cornelius Fudge_

_Viktor Krum_

_Fleur Delacour_

_Olympe Maxime_

_Alastor Moody_

_Nymphadora Tonks_

_Snuffles (ask Dumbledore)_

_If you do not follow these steps, nor invite any of the written people, we will know and will immediately remove the books, and you will not get them back. Start the readings tomorrow after breakfast._

_Yours sincerely, people from the future._

Umbridge left for Dumbledore's office at once, the note and books in her arms.


	2. The Boy Who Lived

The next morning at the end of breakfast, the Toad stood up to announce something 'very important'.

"For the next week, all classes have been cancelled, and instead, we are going to be reading 7 books together that detail the lives of a student here," Umbridge said.

"Oh no," Harry groaned as other students around the hall whispered to each other. He knew it was going to be about him.

"We are going to be reading about Mr Harry Potter's years at Hogwarts." The Toad announced. Harry's suspicions were confirmed as everyone turned to look at him and a great deal of talking erupted.

"WHAT? She can't do that!" Hermione yelled.

"I think you'll find I can, Miss Granger," Umbridge said with a falsely sweet voice and a matching smile. "We just need to wait until the arrival of some extra people who have been invited to hear the reading." As she said this, the doors of the Great Hall opened and in came the Weasley family who weren't already there, Remus Lupin, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Amelia Bones, Minister Cornelius Fudge, Viktor Krum, Fleur Delacour, Olympe Maxime, Alastor Moody, Nymphadora Tonks and a huge, shaggy black dog. "Ah, here they are now. What is that?" Umbridge shrieked as she caught sight of Snuffles (Sirius).

"That is Snuffles who you requested I call to hear this reading too," Dumbledore announced, speaking for the first time, whilst those who had just come in sat down. "He is extremely well trained and won't hurt anyone here."

The Weasleys then spotted Percy who had walked in behind the Minister, and the children scowled, whilst Arthur and Molly became very interested in the table they were sitting at.

"Prat!" growled Fred and George quietly.

"Oh well," whispered Hermione to Harry and Ron, "At least this will prove that you're telling the truth, and Sirius will be cleared as innocent"

"Yeah," Ron said, relieved. Harry however, was thinking in worry. _They're going to find out about what happens at the Dursleys!_

"Now, let us begin. I shall read first," Umbridge said, adn she opened the first book.

**"Chapter 1. The Boy Who Lived."**

"Oooh, it's ickle Harrykins," Fred and George said in childish voices.

"Shut up," Harry replied.

**"Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much."**

"You're very welcome," Fred, George and Lee Jordan said.

**They were the last people you'd expect to be involved in anything strange or mysterious, because they just didn't hold with such nonsense.**

"Why on earth not? It's what makes life fun," Fred yelled in shock, whilst George nodded fervently and some others sniggered.****

Mr. Dursley was the director of a firm called Grunnings, which made drills.

"Before anyone asks," Professor Burbage said, whilst many Pure-Bloods opened their mouths to speak, "Anyone who wants to know what the muggle things in this story mention are can come to me at the end of the week and I shall hold a class explaining what each of these things do."

"Thank you, Charity." Dumbledore smiled.

** He was a big, beefy man with hardly any neck, although he did have a very large moustache. **

"Urgh" Quite a few people shuddered or looked disgusted at the description.

**Mrs. Dursley was thin and blonde and had nearly twice the usual amount of neck, which came in very useful as she spent so much of her time craning over garden fences, spying on the neighbours.**

"Nosey, much. Tut tut." George said.

** The Dursleys had a small son called Dudley**

"Small? Since when is HE small!" yelled Harry.

**and in their opinion there was no finer boy anywhere.**

Harry burst out laughing, as did those who had met or heard stories about Dudley.

"QUIET!" Umbridge shouted. She was getting quite annoyed with all the interuptions.****

The Dursleys had everything they wanted, but they also had a secret, and their greatest fear was that somebody would discover it. They didn't think they could bear it if anyone found out about the Potters.

"What, why?" many people in the hall question, but no-one answered.

** Mrs. Potter was Mrs. Dursley's sister, but they hadn't met for several years; in fact, Mrs. Dursley pretended she didn't have a sister,**

"WHAT? Lily was a wonderful person, the nicest you could meet! How dare she?" Lupin yelled, whilst many other looked shocked.

**because her sister and her good-for-nothing husband**

"James wasn't good-for-nothing," Remus was shaking in anger, whilst Snuffles barked in agreement.

**were as unDursleyish**

"Not a word," said Hermione and the Ravenclaws.

**as it was possible to be. The Dursleys shuddered to think what the neighbours would say if the Potters arrived in the street. The Dursleys knew that the Potters had a small son, too, but they had never even seen him. **

"Why not?" was the question of many.

**This boy was another good reason for keeping the Potters away; they didn't want Dudley mixing with a child like that.**

"A child like what exactly?" Mrs Weasley said in a dangerous voice. Harry didn't say anything.****

When Mr. and Mrs. Dursley woke up on the dull, gray Tuesday our story starts, there was nothing about the cloudy sky outside to suggest that strange and mysterious things would soon be happening all over the country. Mr. Dursley hummed as he picked out his most boring tie for work,

"Why would you purposefully choose your most boring tie?" many asked, but then Harry said "All of his ties are boring. I don't even know how he managed that." A few sniggered.

**and Mrs. Dursley gossiped away happily as she wrestled a screaming Dudley into his high chair.**

"Brat," said many.****

None of them noticed a large, tawny owl flutter past the window.

At half past eight, Mr. Dursley picked up his briefcase, pecked Mrs. Dursley on the cheek, and tried to kiss Dudley good-bye but missed, because Dudley was now having a tantrum and throwing his cereal at the walls.

"Brat!" half the hall yelled.****

"Little tyke," chortled Mr. Dursley as he left the house.

"He's encouraging that type of behaviour?" Mrs Weasley was shocked. Many people looked disgusted.

**He got into his car and backed out of number four's drive.**

It was on the corner of the street that he noticed the first sign of something peculiar - a cat reading a map.

"Minnie!" yelled Fred and George, whilst Snuffles barked in agreement. "Don't call me that," was the response.

**For a second, Mr. Dursley didn't realize what he had seen - then he jerked his head around to look again. There was a tabby cat standing on the corner of Privet Drive, but there wasn't a map in sight. What could he have been thinking of? It must have been a trick of the light. Mr. Dursley blinked and stared at the cat. It stared back.**

"Definitely Minnie" said Lee. "JORDAN!" yelled McGonagall.

**As Mr. Dursley drove around the corner and up the road, he watched the cat in his mirror. It was now reading the sign that said Privet Drive - no, looking at the sign; cats couldn't read maps or signs. Mr. Dursley gave himself a little shake and put the cat out of his mind. As he drove toward town he thought of nothing except a large order of drills he was hoping to get that day.**

"He's very one minded," said Ginny.****

But on the edge of town, drills were driven out of his mind by something else. As he sat in the usual morning traffic jam, he couldn't help noticing that there seemed to be a lot of strangely dressed people about. People in cloaks.

"What's weird about that?" asked the pure-bloods. "Muggles don't wear cloaks anymore." Said Hermione at once.

**Mr. Dursley couldn't bear people who dressed in funny clothes - the getups you saw on young people! He supposed this was some stupid new fashion.**

"Like your fashion is any better. 'Most boring tie'" Fred recited and many sniggered.

**He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel and his eyes fell on a huddle of these weirdos standing quite close by. They were whispering excitedly together. Mr. Dursley was enraged to see that a couple of them weren't young at all; why, that man had to be older than he was, and wearing an emerald-green cloak! The nerve of him! But then it struck Mr. Dursley that this was probably some silly stunt - these people were obviously collecting for something... yes, that would be it. The traffic moved on and a few minutes later, Mr. Dursley arrived in the Grunnings parking lot, his mind back on drills.**

"Very one-minded," said Luna, surprisingly.****

Mr. Dursley always sat with his back to the window in his office on the ninth floor. If he hadn't, he might have found it harder to concentrate on drills that morning. He didn't see the owls swooping past in broad daylight, though people down in the street did; they pointed and gazed open-mouthed as owl after owl sped overhead.

"What's odd about that?" asked a pure-blood Hufflepuff. "Owls aren't used to deliver post in the muggle world," Hermione answered, "They are rarely seen at night, and never during the day."

**Most of them had never seen an owl even at nighttime.**

"See, just like I said," said Hermione.

"No-one disagreed," said Harry and Ron together. Hermione glared at them.

**Mr. Dursley, however, had a perfectly normal, owl-free morning. He yelled at five different people. He made several important telephone calls and shouted a bit more.**

"What in the world is wrong with him?" said Pomona.

**He was in a very good mood until lunchtime, when he thought he'd stretch his legs and walk**

"He WHAT? Since when does he walk WILLINGLY?" yelled Harry is shock.

**across the road to buy himself a bun from the bakery.**

"Oh, that makes sense," said Harry.****

He'd forgotten all about the people in cloaks until he passed a group of them next to the baker's. He eyed them angrily as he passed. He didn't know why, but they made him uneasy.

"Yes, we're very scary. WOOOOO!" said George.

**This bunch were whispering excitedly, too, and he couldn't see a single collecting tin. It was on his way back past them, clutching a large doughnut in a bag, that he caught a few words of what they were saying.**

"The Potters, that's right, that's what I heard-"

"- yes, their son, Harry-"

"Oh no. I know what day this is," said Flitwick quietly.

**Mr. Dursley stopped dead. Fear flooded him. He looked back at the whisperers as if he wanted to say something to them, but thought better of it.**

"Oh my god. He actually thought better of something. Since when does that happen?" said Harry.****

He dashed back across the road, hurried up to his office, snapped at his secretary not to disturb him, seized his telephone, and had almost finished dialling his home number when he changed his mind. He put the receiver back down and stroked his moustache, thinking... no, he was being stupid. Potter wasn't such an unusual name.

"It is in the Wizarding world," said Hermione, "There's only one family in Britain."

**He was sure there were lots of people called Potter who had a son called Harry. Come to think of it, he wasn't even sure his nephew was called Harry.**

"WHAT? HE DIDN'T EVEN KNOW YOUR NAME?" yelled Molly whilst Harry sat there awkwardly.

Snuffles was angry. _How could they not even know the name of their nephew? How dare they!_ he thought.

**He'd never even seen the boy. It might have been Harvey. Or Harold. There was no point in worrying Mrs. Dursley; she always got so upset at any mention of her sister. He didn't blame her - if he'd had a sister like that...**

"A sister like what?" said many in deadly whispers.

**but all the same, those people in cloaks...**

He found it a lot harder to concentrate on drills that afternoon and when he left the building at five o'clock, he was still so worried that he walked straight into someone just outside the door.

"Oh my god. I wonder if they ever recovered," said Fred.

"Yeah they're probably still in St Mungos," said George.****

"Sorry," he grunted, as the tiny old man stumbled and almost fell. It was a few seconds before Mr. Dursley realized that the man was wearing a violet cloak. He didn't seem at all upset at being almost knocked to the ground. On the contrary, his face split into a wide smile and he said in a squeaky voice that made passersby stare, "Don't be sorry, my dear sir, for nothing could upset me today! Rejoice, for You-Know-Who has gone at last! Even Muggles like yourself should be celebrating, this happy, happy day!"

And the old man hugged Mr. Dursley around the middle and walked off.

Professor Flitwick looked a bit awkward and Michael Corner noticed.

"Was that you Professor Flitwick?" he called out.

"Sadly, yes," he said.

"How did your arms fit around him, Professor?" asked Lee, whilst others sniggered.

"They didn't. I only got to either side of his waist," came the reply, and the whole hall laughed.****

Mr. Dursley stood rooted to the spot. He had been hugged by a complete stranger. He also thought he had been called a Muggle, whatever that was.

"It means you have no magic, you idiot," sneered Malfoy, whilst some Slytherins laughed and the rest of the hall glared at him (except for Snape, Fudge and the Toad).

**He was rattled. He hurried to his car and set off for home, hoping he was imagining things, which he had never hoped before, because he didn't approve of imagination.**

"HUH? How can you not approve of imagination?" yelled Fred and George together whilst even the teachers looked confused.

"How could you stand living with them Harry?" asked Pavarti. Harry shrugged.****

As he pulled into the driveway of number four, the first thing he saw - and it didn't improve his mood - was the tabby cat he'd spotted that morning. It was now sitting on his garden wall. He was sure it was the same one; it had the same markings around its eyes.

"Definitely you, professor," said the Gryffindors. _At least they didn't call me Minnie this time,_ she thought.****

"Shoo!" said Mr. Dursley loudly.

The cat didn't move. It just gave him a stern look.

"It can only be you!" yelled Fred to McGonagall, whilst those who had received the look before grinned.

**Was this normal cat behavior?**

"No, it's normal Minnie behaviour," said Lee.

"JORDAN!" yelled McGonagall, whilst Snuffle did something that was remarkably like a laugh for a dog.

_Hmm, there's something odd about that dog. I need to watch it,_ thought Umbridge.

**Mr. Dursley wondered. Trying to pull himself together, he let himself into the house. He was still determined not to mention anything to his wife.**

Mrs. Dursley had had a nice, normal day. She told him over dinner all about Mrs. Next Door's problems with her daughter

"Tut, tut, you shouldn't be spying," said George.

**and how Dudley had learned a new word ("Shan't!").**

"Oh, you must be so proud," said Professor Sprout in sarcasm.

**Mr. Dursley tried to act normally.**

"I bet he failed," said Charlie, speaking for the first time.

**When Dudley had been put to bed, he went into the living room in time to catch the last report on the evening news:**

"And finally, bird-watchers everywhere have reported that the nation's owls have been behaving very unusually today. Although owls normally hunt at night and are hardly ever seen in daylight, there have been hundreds of sightings of these birds flying in every direction since sunrise. Experts are unable to explain why the owls have suddenly changed their sleeping pattern." The newscaster allowed himself a grin. "Most mysterious. And now, over to Jim McGuffin with the weather. Going to be any more showers of owls tonight, Jim?"

"Well, Ted,"

"Ted? That couldn't be Ted Tonks?" said Bill.

"Actually, it is," replied Tonks. "He's stopped working there now, but he did work as a muggle News presenter for 10 years."

**said the weatherman, "I don't know about that, but it's not only the owls that have been acting oddly today. Viewers as far apart as Kent, Yorkshire, and Dundee have been phoning in to tell me that instead of the rain I promised yesterday, they've had a downpour of shooting stars! Perhaps people have been celebrating Bonfire Night early - it's not until next week, folks! But I can promise a wet night tonight."**

Mr. Dursley sat frozen in his armchair. Shooting stars all over Britain? Owls flying by daylight? Mysterious people in cloaks all over the place? And a whisper, a whisper about the Potters...

"He's actually working things out for himself. I'm going to die of shock in a moment," said Harry.****

Mrs. Dursley came into the living room carrying two cups of tea. It was no good. He'd have to say something to her. He cleared his throat nervously.

"Oooh, he's scared," said Fred.

**"Er - Petunia, dear - you haven't heard from your sister lately, have you?"**

As he had expected, Mrs. Dursley looked shocked and angry. After all, they normally pretended she didn't have a sister.

The hall growled.****

"No," she said sharply. "Why?"

"Funny stuff on the news," Mr. Dursley mumbled. "Owls... shooting stars... and there were a lot of funny-looking people in town today..."

"So?" snapped Mrs. Dursley.

"Well, I just thought... maybe... it was something to do with... you know... her crowd."

"HER CROWD? WHAT ON EARTH?" yelled McGonagall. _And Harry had to grow up in that household,_ she thought.****

Mrs. Dursley sipped her tea through pursed lips. Mr. Dursley wondered whether he dared tell her he'd heard the name "Potter." He decided he didn't dare. Instead he said, as casually as he could, "Their son - he'd be about Dudley's age now, wouldn't he?"

"I suppose so," said Mrs. Dursley stiffly.

"She always says things stiffly," said Harry.****

"What's his name again? Howard, isn't it?"

"Harry. Nasty, common name, if you ask me."

"Nobody did!" yelled the hall.

"Yeah it's a nice name!" yelled Ginny, Cho and, surprisingly, Luna.

"Thanks girls," Harry said, whilst others stared at them a bit of confusion.****

"Oh, yes," said Mr. Dursley, his heart sinking horribly. "Yes, I quite agree."

He didn't say another word on the subject as they went upstairs to bed. While Mrs. Dursley was in the bathroom, Mr. Dursley crept to the bedroom window and peered down into the front garden. The cat was still there. It was staring down Privet Drive as though it were waiting for something.

Was he imagining things? Could all this have anything to do with the Potters? If it did... if it got out that they were related to a pair of - well, he didn't think he could bear it.

"And I can't bear being related to you," said Harry.****

The Dursleys got into bed. Mrs. Dursley fell asleep quickly but Mr. Dursley lay awake, turning it all over in his mind. His last, comforting thought before he fell asleep was that even if the Potters were involved, there was no reason for them to come near him and Mrs. Dursley. The Potters knew very well what he and Petunia thought about them and their kind... He couldn't see how he and Petunia could get mixed up in anything that might be going on - he yawned and turned over - it couldn't affect them...

How very wrong he was.

"Sadly," said Harry. Others looked at him in concern. What could have happened that he hated his family so much?****

Mr. Dursley might have been drifting into an uneasy sleep, but the cat on the wall outside was showing no sign of sleepiness. It was sitting as still as a statue, its eyes fixed unblinkingly on the far corner of Privet Drive. It didn't so much as quiver when a car door slammed on the next street, nor when two owls swooped overhead. In fact, it was nearly midnight before the cat moved at all.

"WHAT? How can you do that?" yelled half the hall.

"It takes patience," came the reply.****

A man appeared on the corner the cat had been watching, appeared so suddenly and silently you'd have thought he'd just popped out of the ground.

**The cat's tail twitched and its eyes narrowed.**

"You took your time, I must say," said McGonagall.

"I came as fast as I could," said Dumbledore.****

Nothing like this man had ever been seen on Privet Drive. He was tall, thin, and very old, judging by the silver of his hair and beard, which were both long enough to tuck into his belt. He was wearing long robes, a purple cloak that swept the ground, and high-heeled, buckled boots. His blue eyes were light, bright, and sparkling behind half-moon spectacles and his nose was very long and crooked, as though it had been broken at least twice. This man's name was Albus Dumbledore.

"YAY! Dumbledore's arrived!" yelled the twins. Many smiled at their antics, but Fudge, Umbridge and Percy looked on in displeasure. _They aren't supposed to be supportive of Dumbledore!_ Fudge thought angrily.****

Albus Dumbledore didn't seem to realize that he had just arrived in a street where everything from his name to his boots was unwelcome.

"I knew, but I didn't care at all," said Dumbledore, earning quite a few chuckles.

**He was busy rummaging in his cloak, looking for something. But he did seem to realize he was being watched, because he looked up suddenly at the cat, which was still staring at him from the other end of the street. For some reason, the sight of the cat seemed to amuse him. He chuckled and muttered, "I should have known."**

"You didn't expect me to be there?" asked McGonagall. Dumbledore didn't answer.****

He found what he was looking for in his inside pocket. It seemed to be a silver cigarette lighter. He flicked it open, held it up in the air, and clicked it. The nearest street lamp went out with a little pop.

"Wicked, Professor!" said Seamus and Dean. Dumbledore smiled.

**He clicked it again - the next lamp flickered into darkness. Twelve times he clicked the Put-Outer,**

"It's actually called a Deluminator," said Dumbledore informingly.

**until the only lights left on the whole street were two tiny pinpricks in the distance, which were the eyes of the cat watching him. If anyone looked out of their window now, even beady-eyed Mrs. Dursley,**

"Beady eyed is right," growled Ron.

**they wouldn't be able to see anything that was happening down on the pavement. Dumbledore slipped the Put-Outer back inside his cloak and set off down the street toward number four, where he sat down on the wall next to the cat. He didn't look at it, but after a moment he spoke to it.**

"Fancy seeing you here, Professor McGonagall."

"WE WERE RIGHT! WE WERE RIGHT!" sang Fred, George and Lee, who got up dancing.

"SIT DOWN!" yelled Umbridge, whilst most of the hall laughed.****

He turned to smile at the tabby, but it had gone. Instead he was smiling at a rather severe-looking woman who was wearing square glasses exactly the shape of the markings the cat had had around its eyes. She, too, was wearing a cloak, an emerald one. Her black hair was drawn into a tight bun. She looked distinctly ruffled.

"How did you know it was me?" she asked.

"My dear Professor, I've never seen a cat sit so stiffly."

Many sniggered.****

"You'd be stiff if you'd been sitting on a brick wall all day," said Professor McGonagall.

"You didn't have to," said Dumbledore.

"I wanted to see what the Dursleys were like," hissed McGonagall.****

"All day? When you could have been celebrating? I must have passed a dozen feasts and parties on my way here."

Professor McGonagall sniffed angrily.

"Oh yes, I've celebrating, all right," she said impatiently. "You'd think they'd be a bit more careful, but no - even the Muggles have noticed something's going on.

"And that's saying something," said Malfoy.

"Shut up, Malfoy," said Harry

**It was on their news." She jerked her head back at the Dursleys' dark living-room window. "I heard it. Flocks of owls... shooting stars... Well, they're not completely stupid. They were bound to notice something. Shooting stars down in Kent - I'll bet that was Dedalus Diggle. He never had much sense."**

"That wasn't very nice Professor!" said Fred.

"How dare you say that?" George said.****

"You can't blame them," said Dumbledore gently. "We've had precious little to celebrate for eleven years."

"I know that," said Professor McGonagall irritably. "But that's no reason to lose our heads. People are being downright careless, out on the streets in broad daylight, not even dressed in Muggle clothes, swapping rumors."

"I actually think that it may have been more obvious if people were dressed in muggle clothes, because so many wizards and witches don't really understand how to dress like muggles," said Hermione, giggling, remembering some of the people at the Quidditch World Cup the previous year, whilst other muggle-borns laughed.****

She threw a sharp, sideways glance at Dumbledore here, as though hoping he was going to tell her something, but he didn't, so she went on. "A fine thing it would be if, on the very day You-Know-Who seems to have disappeared at last, the Muggles found out about us all. I suppose he really has gone, Dumbledore?"

"It certainly seems so," said Dumbledore. "We have much to be thankful for. Would you care for a lemon drop?"

"A what?" questioned most of the hall.****

"A what?"

"A lemon drop. They're a kind of Muggle sweet I'm rather fond of."

"Here, you can all try them now," said Dumbledore, and with a flick of his wand, there were bowls along each table filled to the brim with them.

"Thanks, Professor," most said, grabbing a few.****

"No, thank you," said Professor McGonagall coldly, as though she didn't think this was the moment for lemon drops.

"It most certainly wasn't!" snapped McGonagall.

**"As I say, even if You-Know-Who has gone-"**

"And he has," Umbridge interrupted herself, whilst Harry said, "And he hasn't." They looked at each other.

"YOU-KNOW-WHO HAS GONE, MR POTTER," Umbridge screeched.

"DOLORES! I cannot permit you to speak to my students like that," Dumbledore intervened. Umbridge glared at Dumbledore and Harry before continuing to read.****

"My dear Professor, surely a sensible person like yourself can call him by his name? All this 'You-Know-Who' nonsense - for eleven years I have been trying to persuade people to call him by his proper name:

Umbridge stopped reading. Then, she stuttered out,

**Voldemort."**

Almost the whole hall flinched.

**Professor McGonagall flinched, but Dumbledore, who was unsticking two lemon drops, seemed not to notice. "It all gets so confusing if we keep saying 'You-Know-Who.' I have never seen any reason to be frightened of saying**

Umbridge stuttered again.

**Voldemort's**

Flinch.

**name."**

"I know you haven't, said Professor McGonagall, sounding half exasperated, half admiring. "But you're different. Everyone knows you're the only one You-Know- oh, all right,

(Cue the stuttering)

**Voldemort,**

As most of the hall flinched again, Harry called out,

"Oh come on, it's just a NAME! Besides, fear of the name increases fear of the thing itself."

**was frightened of."**

"You flatter me," said Dumbledore calmly. "Voldemort had powers I will never have."

"Only because you're too - well - noble to use them."

"You are Professor," said Angelina Johnson, and many nodded in agreement.****

"It's lucky it's dark. I haven't blushed so much since Madam Pomfrey told me she liked my new earmuffs."

"EEEEWWWW!" cried the girls whilst the boys made disgusted faces.****

Professor McGonagall shot a sharp look at Dumbledore and said "The owls are nothing next to the rumors that are flying around. You know what they're saying? About why he's disappeared? About what finally stopped him?"

"Harry did," said Fred.

"Yes, all hail Harry," shouted George, and the twins got down and pretended to worship him, whilst Harry glared at them and most of the hall laughed.

"GET UP NOW!" yelled Umbridge.****

It seemed that Professor McGonagall had reached the point she was most anxious to discuss, the real reason she had been waiting on a cold, hard wall all day, for neither as a cat nor as a woman had she fixed Dumbledore with such a piercing stare as she did now. It was plain that whatever "everyone" was saying, she was not going to believe it until Dumbledore told her it was true. Dumbledore, however, was choosing another lemon drop and did not answer.

"And for what you had to tell me, I don't blame you," said McGonagall quietly.****

"What they're saying," she pressed on, "is that last night Voldemort turned up in Godric's Hollow. He went to find the Potters. The rumor is that Lily and James Potter are - are - that they're - dead."

Harry bowed his head and shook a bit, whilst Snuffles let out a howl and those from the Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables looked at him in sorrow. Even those who didn't believe him still felt bad for him, because he had lost his parents at only 1 year old and had no memories of them. No-one should have to go through that.****

Dumbledore bowed his head. Professor McGonagall gasped.

"Lily and James... I can't believe it... I didn't want to believe it... Oh, Albus..."

"I don't think any of us wanted to believe it, Minerva," sighed Remus.****

Dumbledore reached out and patted her on the shoulder. "I know... I know... " he said heavily.

Professor McGonagall's voice trembled as she went on. "That's not all. They're saying he tried to kill the Potter's son, Harry. But he couldn't. He couldn't kill that little boy. No one knows why, or how, but they're saying that when he couldn't kill Harry Potter, Voldemort's power somehow broke - and that's why he's gone."

Dumbledore nodded glumly.

"It's - it's true ?" faltered Professor McGonagall. "After all he's done... all the people he's killed... he couldn't kill a little boy? It's just astounding... of all the things to stop him... but how in the name of heaven did Harry survive?"

"Because of my Mum," Harry said quietly, and Hermione took his hand whilst Ron gripped his shoulder.****

"We can only guess," said Dumbledore. "We may never know."

"But you do know, Professor," said Harry, again speaking quietly. "You were the one who told me."****

Professor McGonagall pulled out a lace handkerchief and dabbed at her eyes beneath her spectacles. Dumbledore gave a great sniff as he took a golden watch from his pocket and examined it. It was a very odd watch. It had twelve hands but no numbers; instead, little planets were moving around the edge.

"Huh, how does that work?" asked Colin Creevey.

"It is a special Pocket watch that allows me to tell the time of everywhere in the world, as well as how far away people who are coming to see me are, and exactly how long it will take for those people to get to me," Dumbledore responded.

"Cool, sir! Where can you get them?" asked Dennis Creevey, Colin's younger brother.

"In Diagon Alley, in Gambol and Japes actually," Dumbledore grinned, "It is one of the few things that they have there that isn't a pranking item."

**It must have made sense to Dumbledore, though, because he put it back in his pocket and said, "Hagrid's late. I suppose it was he who told you I'd be here, by the way?"**

"He does have a bit of a habit of letting things slip," Ron said quietly so only Harry and Hermione could hear. They grinned in return.

**"Yes," said Professor McGonagall. "And I don't suppose you're going to tell me why you're here, of all places?"**

"I knew why, but I hoped you would have changed your mind," said McGonagall quietly to Dumbledore.

**"I've come to bring Harry to his aunt and uncle. They're the only family he has left now."**

"Why did you take me there, sir? I hate them, and they hate me," Harry said. Ron and Hermione glanced at each other in concern. Why do they hate Harry? What have they done to him to make him hate them?****

"You don't mean - you can't mean the people who live here ?" cried Professor McGonagall, jumping to her feet and pointing at number four. "Dumbledore - you can't. I've been watching them all day. You couldn't find two people who are less like us. And they've got this son - I saw him kicking his mother all the way up the street, screaming for sweets.

"BRAT!" yelled half the hall.

**Harry Potter come and live here!"**

"It's the best place for him," said Dumbledore firmly.

"Where did you get that idea, Dumbledore?" questioned Harry.

**"His aunt and uncle will be able to explain everything to him when he's older.**

_But they didn't, did they. Hagrid had to explain everything, _Harry thought.

**I've written them a letter."**

"Did you seriously think that you would be able to explain everything to them in a letter?!" shrieked Hermione. Dumbledore winced. _Perhaps I should have actually talked them through it_, he thought.****

"A letter?" repeated Professor McGonagall faintly, sitting back down on the wall. "Really, Dumbledore, you think you can explain all this in a letter?

"Hey, Hermione thinks," said Fred.

"Like McGonagall!" finished George.

**These people will never understand him! He'll be famous - a legend - I wouldn't be surprised if today was known as Harry Potter day in the future**

"IT IS NOT, IS IT PROFESSOR?" yelled Harry, whilst people around him winced at the loudness of his voice.

"No, Harry," said Dumbledore.

"Thank Merlin for that then," said Harry, looking utterly relieved.

_What? Doesn't Potter like his fame?_ thought Snape. _No, it's probably just an act. He is, after all, a reincarnation of his father, who loved fame more than anything else. Potter probably wishes there was a Harry Potter day!_

**- there will be books written about Harry - every child in our world will know his name!"**

"Sadly," commented Harry.****

"Exactly." said Dumbledore, looking very seriously over the top of his half-moon glasses. "It would be enough to turn any boy's head.

_And it did,_ thought Snape.

**Famous before he can walk and talk! Famous for something he won't even remember! Can you see how much better off he'll be, growing up away from all that until he's ready to take it?"**

Professor McGonagall opened her mouth, changed her mind, swallowed, and then said, "Yes - yes, you're right, of course.

"Why did you give up so easily Professor?" asked Harry.

**But how is the boy getting here, Dumbledore?" She eyed his cloak suddenly as though she thought he might be hiding Harry underneath it.**

"That'd be really creepy," said Bill.****

"Hagrid's bringing him."

"You think it - wise - to trust Hagrid with something as important as this?"

"Sorry, Hagrid," said McGonagall immediately.

"S alrigh, Professor," Hagrid replied.****

"I would trust Hagrid with my life," said Dumbledore.

"I'm not saying his heart isn't in the right place," said Professor McGonagall grudgingly, "but you can't pretend he's not careless. He does tend to - what was that?"

"Huh?" questioned the hall.

"Well, if you would stop interrupting me, maybe you would find out," said the Toad in her falsely sweet voice that she put on when she was really angry.****

A low rumbling sound had broken the silence around them. It grew steadily louder as they looked up and down the street for some sign of a headlight; it swelled to a roar as they both looked up at the sky - and a huge motorcycle fell out of the air and landed on the road in front of them.

Snuffles barked at the mention of his motorbike, whilst most of the hall shouted, "COOL!"****

If the motorcycle was huge, it was nothing to the man sitting astride it. He was almost twice as tall as a normal man and at least five times as wide. He looked simply too big to be allowed, and so wild - long tangles of bushy black hair and beard hid most of his face, he had hands the size of trash can lids, and his feet in their leather boots were like baby dolphins.

"Hmm, if that's anything to go by, the description's in this book are going to be a bit insulting to the people they are of," said Harry.

**In his vast, muscular arms he was holding a bundle of blankets.**

"Aww, it's ickle Harrykins," said George in a babyish voice.

"Shut up," replied Harry.****

"Hagrid," said Dumbledore, sounding relieved. "At last. And where did you get that motorcycle?"

"Yeah, where?" questioned Terry Boot.****

"Borrowed it, Professor Dumbledore, sir," said the giant, climbing carefully off the motorcycle as he spoke. "Young Sirius Black lent it to me.

Remus smiled, remembering the motorcycle that Sirius had shown him only a month before these events.

**I've got him, sir."**

"No problems, were there?"

"No, sir - house was almost destroyed, but I got him out all right before the Muggles started swarmin' around. He fell asleep as we was flyin' over Bristol."

"Aww," said some of the girls, whilst the other girls cooed and Harry went bright red. Some of the boys sniggered.****

Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall bent forward over the bundle of blankets. Inside, just visible, was a baby boy, fast asleep. Under a tuft of jet-black hair over his forehead they could see a curiously shaped cut, like a bolt of lightning.

"Your trademark Harry," said Fred.

"That I wish I didn't have," said Harry.****

"Is that where - ?" whispered Professor McGonagall.

"Yes," said Dumbledore. "He'll have that scar forever."

"Couldn't you do something about it, Dumbledore?"

"Yeah couldn't you Professor?" pleaded Harry.****

"Even if I could, I wouldn't. Scars can come in handy. I have one myself above my left knee that is a perfect map of the London Underground.

"Wicked, sir!" said Fred, George and Lee.

**Well - give him here, Hagrid - we'd better get this over with."**

Dumbledore took Harry in his arms and turned toward the Dursleys' house.

"Could I - could I say good-bye to him, sir?" asked Hagrid. He bent his great, shaggy head over Harry and gave him what must have been a very scratchy, whiskery kiss. Then, suddenly, Hagrid let out a howl like a wounded dog.

Hagrid repeated this sound now, remembering that night.****

"Shhh!" hissed Professor McGonagall, "You'll wake the Muggles!"

"They wouldn't be able to see anything though, would they?" said Luna, surprisingly speaking sense for once. Everyone looked confused for a moment before remembering the Deluminator.****

"S-s-sorry," sobbed Hagrid, taking out a large, spotted handkerchief and burying his face in it. "But I c-c-can't stand it - Lily an' James dead - an' poor little Harry off ter live with Muggles-"

"I wish it was anywhere but there," said Harry, worrying Ron and Hermione even more.****

"Yes, yes, it's all very sad, but get a grip on yourself, Hagrid, or we'll be found," Professor McGonagall whispered, patting Hagrid gingerly on the arm as Dumbledore stepped over the low garden wall and walked to the front door. He laid Harry gently on the doorstep, took a letter out of his cloak, tucked it inside Harry's blankets, and then came back to the other two.

"YOU LEFT HIM ON A DOORSTEP! WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?" screeched Molly.

"Calm down, Molly. I put a number of heating and safety charms on him before I left," replied Dumbledore.

"Yes, but still," said Molly in a scandalised tone.

**For a full minute the three of them stood and looked at the little bundle; Hagrid's shoulders shook, Professor McGonagall blinked furiously, and the twinkling light that usually shone from Dumbledore's eyes seemed to have gone out.**

"You should have just taken me with you," said Harry quietly.****

"Well," said Dumbledore finally, "that's that. We've no business staying here. We may as well go and join the celebrations."

"Yes, join the celebrations after leaving Harry on a doorstep in the middle of the night," said Molly.****

"Yeah," said Hagrid in a very muffled voice, "I'll be takin' Sirius his bike back.

Snuffles whined. He never did get to see his bike again.

**G'night, Professor McGonagall - Professor Dumbledore, sir."**

Wiping his streaming eyes on his jacket sleeve, Hagrid swung himself onto the motorcycle and kicked the engine into life; with a roar it rose into the air and off into the night.

"I shall see you soon, I expect, Professor McGonagall," said Dumbledore, nodding to her. Professor McGonagall blew her nose in reply.

"Why, weren't you going back to Hogwarts?" questioned Lee.****

Dumbledore turned and walked back down the street. On the corner he stopped and took out the silver Put-Outer. He clicked it once, and twelve balls of light sped back to their street lamps so that Privet Drive glowed suddenly orange

"That is so cool," said Ron.

**and he could make out a tabby cat slinking around the corner at the other end of the street. He could just see the bundle of blankets on the step of number four.**

"Good luck, Harry," he murmured.

"I'll be needing it," said Harry, looking at the table. People looked at each other. Why would he be needing it?

**He turned on his heel and with a swish of his cloak, he was gone.**

"It's like magic," said Fred in an amazed tone, and others laughed.****

A breeze ruffled the neat hedges of Privet Drive, which lay silent and tidy under the inky sky, the very last place you would expect astonishing things to happen. Harry Potter rolled over inside his blankets without waking up. One small hand closed on the letter beside him and he slept on, not knowing he was special, not knowing he was famous, not knowing he would be woken in a few hours' time by Mrs. Dursley's scream as she opened the front door to put out the milk bottles,

"Well that sounds like the best way to wake up," said Ginny in an annoyed voice.

**nor that he would spend the next few weeks being prodded and pinched by his cousin Dudley...**

"Brat," echoed through the hall.

**He couldn't know that at this very moment, people meeting in secret all over the country were holding up their glasses and saying in hushed voices: "To Harry Potter - the boy who lived!"**

"Well that is the end of the chapter. Who would like to read next?" called out the Toad.

"I will," called out Kingsley, and he walked up to take the book.


	3. The Vanishing Glass

**Hi guys!**

**Look, I'm really sorry about the wait. It's the holiday's now but I had homework to do! It's so stupid. Grrrr! Oh well, I've finished it now and I'm able to read and write more fan-fiction! So on with the story! :)**

**Disclaimer: I should have mentioned this before but here it is now - I don't own Harry Potter nor any of the characters. They all belongs to J. K. Rowling!**

* * *

Kingsley walked up to the front of the hall and picked up the book. He opened his mouth to read when CRACK.

The whole hall jumped, and Dumbledore walked over to the middle of the hall. Another note was on the floor.

"Another note has arrived," he called out and the whole hall looked surprised.

"Read it out loud then!" shrieked Umbridge.

"_Dear Hogwarts,_

_We people of the future feel that it would be best if one of you took your true form whilst hearing the reading of the books._"

"True form?" questioned most.

"_We request that this happens now, and if you do not comply then we will take the books away._"

"WELL THEN, WHOEVER ISN'T IN HTEIR TRUE FORM GO BACK NOW!" Umbridge screamed.

"DOLORES! I have already spoken to you about this! And let me finish reading the note," Dumbledore said.

"_You know who you are, and whilst some may be inclined to do something, you must not do anything! If you do, we will remove the books, and this person will be Apparated immediately to a safe house and you will never find them again. It will be explained in book 3 about why you shouldn't do anything._

_Sincerely, people of the future."_

"Huh, what would people want to do?" questioned some, whilst others looked thoroughly confused.

"They're asking about Sirius," Hermione hissed to Harry and Ron. They looked a bit shocked, but nodded in understanding.

"What are they talking about?" said Umbridge in an annoyed tone.

"Don't worry, Dolores. Sirius, if you could return to your usual form then please," Dumbledore called out.

"Sirius? Sirius who?" said a few, whilst a big, shaggy black dog walked out next to Dumbledore.

_I KNEW there was something odd about that dog!_ Umbridge thought. _Now I shall find out what!_

The dog shivered, then started to rapidly change. The hair was seemingly sucked back into its body, clothes appeared on the body, it stood up on two legs whilst shrinking and then the transformation was complete. Almost everyone stared at the person in shock. Then…

"SIRIUS! IT'S SIRIUS BLACK! GET HIM!" Umbridge shrieked, getting out her wand and pointing it at him.

"DOLORES, NO! You heard what the people of the future said, and YOU WILL NOT ATTACK OR ARREST HIM!" Dumbledore shouted, and everyone in the hall could feel the power radiating from him, and could see how dangerous he looked, and for those who did not know how Dumbledore was the most feared Wizard to Voldemort and his followers, they suddenly understood. No-one would want to get on his bad side.

Umbridge meanwhile cowered away from him and put her wand back in her pocket. She turned to sit down, and had the most disgusting look on her face.

Sirius meanwhile, went and sat down in between of Harry and Lupin. He gave his godson a hug and Harry smiled, whilst those who didn't know that Sirius was innocent stared or looked away fearful of him.

"Would you proceed with the reading please, Kingsley?" Dumbledore asked politely as he took his seat.

"Of course," Kingsley replied.

**Nearly ten years had passed since the Dursleys had woken up to find their nephew on the front step, but Privet Drive had hardly changed at all.**

"WHAT? That must be soooo boring," said Fred.

"Yeah I'd die of boredom if I lived there straight away," said George.

**The sun rose on the same tidy front gardens and lit up the brass number four on the Dursleys' front door; it crept into their living room, which was almost exactly the same as it had been on the night when Mr. Dursley had seen that fateful news report about the owls.**

"BOOOOORING!" yelled Lee.

**Only the photographs on the mantelpiece really showed how much time had passed. Ten years ago, there had been lots of pictures of what looked like a large pink beach ball wearing different-colored bonnets**

Everyone burst out laughing, and Fred and George looked at Harry in amusement.

"We are so proud," they both said.

**- but Dudley Dursley was no longer a baby, and now the photographs showed a large blond boy riding his first bicycle, on a carousel at the fair, playing a computer game with his father, being hugged and kissed by his mother. The room held no sign at all that another boy lived in the house, too.**

"And why is that may I ask?" Hermione said in a dangerous voice.

"You'll find out soon enough," said Harry.

Yet Harry Potter was still there, asleep at the moment, but not for long. His Aunt Petunia was awake and it was her shrill voice that made the first noise of the day.

"Well zat must ave been pleezant," said Fleur, making a face. **(A.N. I'm not fully sure how to write down Fleur's speech, so I'm just guessing)**

**"Up! Get up! Now!"**

**Harry woke with a start. His aunt rapped on the door again.**

**"Up!" she screeched.**

"Very pleasant," said Bill, also looking annoyed. At least he didn't have to wake up to his Mum's yelling at the Burrow.

**Harry heard her walking toward the kitchen and then the sound of the frying pan being put on the stove. He rolled onto his back and tried to remember the dream he had been having. It had been a good one. There had been a flying motorcycle in it. He had a funny feeling he'd had the same dream before.**

"No Harrykins, I've actually got the feeling that it was real," said Fred.

"Shut up, I didn't know it then," said Harry.

**His aunt was back outside the door.**

**"Are you up yet?" she demanded.**

**"Nearly," said Harry.**

"How long was it between when she first came to your door and then?" asked Sirius.

"About 10 seconds," Harry replied.

"Stupid old hag," Sirius said under his breath.

**"Well, get a move on, I want you to look after the bacon. And don't you dare let it burn, I want everything perfect on Duddy's birthday."**

"THEY MAKE YOU COOK?! WHEN DID THEY START THAT?!" Molly screamed and half the hall winced at how loud she was.

Harry mumbled an answer.

"Pardon, Harry, I didn't hear you," Molly said in a still dangerous tone.

"He said 'When I was tall enough to reach the stove," growled Sirius, who was shaking with anger.

_If this is their reaction now, I can't wait to see their reaction's to where I slept,_ Harry thought in sarcasm.

**Harry groaned.**

**"What did you say?" his aunt snapped through the door.**

"Nothing," growled Ginny.

**"Nothing, nothing..."**

**Dudley's birthday - how could he have forgotten?**

"I believe that would be easy Harry," said George.

**Harry got slowly out of bed and started looking for socks. He found a pair under his bed and, after pulling a spider**

Ron shuddered.

**off one of them, put them on. Harry was used to spiders,**

"How can you be used to spiders?" yelled Ron.

"You'll see in a moment," said Harry, who then put his head on the table. People looked at him quizzically.

**because the cupboard under the stairs was full of them,**

"What has that got to do with anything?" asked a few first years.

Kingsley stopped reading. He had just finished reading the sentence, and then looked up, staring at Harry in shock, his eyes bulging, and mouth hanging open.

"What's wrong, Kingsley?" asked Arthur.

"I'll tell you now," he replied. His usually calm voice shook with rage as he finished reading the sentence.

**and that was where he slept.**

Everyone in the hall looked at Harry, then an uproar took place.

"HOW COULD YOU PLACE HIM THERE DUMBLEDORE?!" shrieked Molly.

"HE COULD HAVE BEEN PUT ANYWHERE, BUT NO, YOU HAD TO PUT HIM WHERE THEY WOULD TREAT HIM LIKE A SLAVE AND THEN GIVE HIM THE WORST PLACE POSSIBLE TO SLEEP!" yelled Sirius.

"I thought they would treat him like family," Dumbledore said, who was looking at Harry in shock, pity and disbelief.

"OH YES, BECAUSE TREATING PEOPLE LIKE SLAVES AND HAVING THEM SLEEPING IN CUPBOARDS IS VERY FAMILY LIKE!" Molly screamed.

"I didn't know that would happen!" Dumbledore said.

"YOU COULD HAVE LISTENED TO WHAT MCGONAGALL SAID, BUT YOU JUST HAD TO IGNORE HER DIDN'T YOU!" yelled Sirius.

"I had to do what I did because of the Blood-Wards. And I will speak to you later about them." said Dumbledore.

"NO, YOU MUST PROMISE TO ME NOW THAT YOU WILL GET HARRY OUT OF THERE AND HE CAN COME AND LIVE WITH ME! I DON'T CARE IF YOU REFUSE, BECAUSE IF YOU SEND HIM BACK THERE I WILL GO TO THAT HOUSE AND TAKE HIM TO MINE THE MINUTE HE ARRIVES THERE!" yelled Sirius. Harry finally took his head off the table looked at his godfather in disbelief and hope.

"You didn't really think I would continue to let you stay there, did you?" Sirius questioned quietly.

"No," said Harry.

"Hmm, I believe that we may be able to do something with the Blood-Wards that will allow for that, not that I think about it. Yes, Sirius, you have your wish, Harry will live with you from now on," Dumbledore declared.

"Thanks sooooo much Sirius," Harry said to him and he hugged him.

"No problems at all," said Sirius.

"CAN WE CONTINUE NOW?" screeched Umbridge.

"DOLORES! We shall but if you do that one more time, I will put a Silencing Charm on you that no-one else will be able to take off," Dumbledore threatened.

When he was dressed he went down the hall into the kitchen. The table was almost hidden beneath all Dudley's birthday presents.

"Spoilt brat," said many.

**It looked as though Dudley had gotten the new computer he wanted, not to mention the second television and the racing bike. Exactly why Dudley wanted a racing bike was a mystery to Harry, as Dudley was very fat and hated exercise - unless of course it involved punching somebody.**

"He had better not mean you," said Tonks.

**Dudley's favorite punching bag was Harry,**

Nearly everyone growled.

**but he couldn't often catch him. Harry didn't look it, but he was very fast.**

"You're telling me. Every time we are running somewhere, we get left for dead," Ron whispered to Hermione, and they both silently laughed.

Perhaps it had something to do with living in a dark cupboard, but Harry had always been small and skinny for his age.

"No, that is just the Potter family genes of being scrawny," Sirius grinned, and Harry smacked him lightly over the head in return.

**He looked even smaller and skinnier than he really was because all he had to wear were old clothes of Dudley's, and Dudley was about four times bigger than he was.**

"No Harry, we're pretty sure," Fred said.

"He's 10 times bigger than you," said George.

"You didn't even get to have your own proper clothes?" Hermione asked in shock.

"Nope," Harry said, and many frowned.

**Harry had a thin face, knobbly knees, black hair, and bright green eyes.**

"Just like James," said Sirius, smiling in reminiscence.

"Except for Lily's eyes," said Remus, who was also smiling.

**He wore round glasses held together with a lot of Scotch tape because of all the times Dudley had punched him on the nose.**

Growls echoed through the hall.

**The only thing Harry liked about his own appearance was a very thin scar on his forehead that was shaped like a bolt of lightning.**

"You used to like that?" Ron asked, shocked.

"Well, I didn't know what it really was then and it was the only thing that made me different and sort of special," Harry replied.

**He had had it as long as he could remember, and the first question he could ever remember asking his Aunt Petunia was how he had gotten it.**

Kinglsey's eyes widened as he read the response. Then he read out to everyone...

"In the car crash when your parents died," she had said.

"WHAT?! THEY LIED TO YOU AND TOLD YOU IT WAS A CAR CRASH?!" yelled Sirius, whilst others looked at Harry in shock.

"Yep," Harry said glumly.

"So you didn't even know what had truly happened to you and to your parents and everyone else in the Wizarding World knew?" Remus asked in shock.

"Yeah," Harry said again in remorse.

"I swear, I'm gonna..." Sirius trailed off, thinking of all the things he could do to the Dursleys.

**"And don't ask questions."**

Don't ask questions - that was the first rule for a quiet life with the Dursleys.

"What a stupid rule. How would you learn?" said a fourth year Ravenclaw.

"I think the point of the rule was that I wouldn't learn," said Harry.

_That must be why he is always so quiet in class. Why, even if he's having trouble, he never asks for help,_ McGonagall thought sadly. Little did she know most of the other teacher's were thinking the same thing (except Snape and the Toad).

**Uncle Vernon entered the kitchen as Harry was turning over the bacon.**

**"Comb your hair!" he barked, by way of a morning greeting.**

"You know what, I think that should be our new morning greeting, Gred," said George, trying to make people not seem so down.

"Great idea, Forge," said Fred. Many grinned at their antics.

**About once a week, Uncle Vernon looked over the top of his newspaper and shouted that Harry needed a haircut. Harry must have had more haircuts than the rest of the boys in his class put together, but it made no difference, his hair simply grew that way - all over the place.**

Many laughed, whilst Sirius said, laughing,

"The curse of the Potter hair." Harry grinned.

**Harry was frying eggs by the time Dudley arrived in the kitchen with his mother.**

"Having Harry cooking, how dare they," Molly said quietly.

**Dudley looked a lot like Uncle Vernon. He had a large pink face, not much neck, small, watery blue eyes, and thick blond hair that lay smoothly on his thick, fat head.**

"Eurgh!" Lavender groaned.

**Aunt Petunia often said that Dudley looked like a baby angel - Harry often said that Dudley looked like a pig in a wig.**

The hall erupted into laughter, whilst Fred and George said to Harry,

"Harry how dare you! That is an insult to pigs who wear wigs!" Those who heard this laughed.

**Harry put the plates of egg and bacon on the table, which was difficult as there wasn't much room. Dudley, meanwhile, was counting his presents. His face fell.**

**"Thirty-six,"**

"WHAT?! HE GOT THRITY-SIX PRESENTS?!" yelled most.

"Just you wait for the next bit," Harry said grimly.

**he said, looking up at his mother and father. "That's two less than last year."**

"TWO LESS THAN LAST YEAR?! WHAT A SPOILT BRAT!" yelled most of the hall.

**"Darling, you haven't counted Auntie Marge's present, see, it's here under this big one from Mummy and Daddy."**

**"All right, thirty-seven then," said Dudley, going red in the face. Harry, who could see a huge Dudley tantrum coming on, began wolfing down his bacon as fast as possible in case Dudley turned the table over.**

'Good idea Harry," Ron said seriously, his mind on food again, whilst those who knew how much he ate laughed or rolled their eyes.

**Aunt Petunia obviously scented danger, too, because she said quickly, "And we'll buy you another two presents while we're out today. How's that, popkin? Two more presents. Is that all right"**

"And she gives him MORE?!" yelled most of the hall again.

**Dudley thought for a moment. It looked like hard work. Finally he said slowly, "So I'll have thirty... thirty..."**

"Merlin, he can't even count!" said Terry Boot from Ravenclaw.

**"Thirty-nine, sweetums," said Aunt Petunia.**

**"Oh." Dudley sat down heavily and grabbed the nearest parcel. "All right then."**

**Uncle Vernon chuckled.**

**"Little tyke wants his money's worth, just like his father. 'Atta boy, Dudley!" He ruffled Dudley's hair.**

"HE'S ENCOURAGING THAT TYPE OF BEHAVIOUR?!" yelled Molly and a few others.

**At that moment the telephone rang and Aunt Petunia went to answer it while Harry and Uncle Vernon watched Dudley unwrap the racing bike, a video camera, a remote control airplane, sixteen new computer games, and a VCR. He was ripping the paper off a gold wristwatch when Aunt Petunia came back from the telephone looking both angry and worried.**

**"Bad news, Vernon," she said. "Mrs. Figg's broken her leg. She can't take him." She jerked her head in Harry's direction.**

**"'Him' has a name you know," said Ginny in anger.**

**Dudley's mouth fell open in horror, but Harry's heart gave a leap. Every year on Dudley's birthday, his parents took him and a friend out for the day, to adventure parks, hamburger restaurants, or the movies. Every year, Harry was left behind with Mrs. Figg, a mad old lady who lived two streets away. Harry hated it there. The whole house smelled of cabbage and Mrs. Figg made him look at photographs of all the cats she'd ever owned.**

"Why did Arabella make your time there so miserable?" questioned Remus, who knew she was a Squib.

"My guess is that because the Dursley's knew I wasn't having any fun, she could take me each time and at least check up on me," said Harry, and Remus nodded his head in grim understanding.

**"Now what?" said Aunt Petunia, looking furiously at Harry as though he'd planned this.**

"How could he?" asked many in anger.

"They blame me for anything bad that happens," said Harry, and many growled.

**Harry knew he ought to feel sorry that Mrs. Figg had broken her leg, but it wasn't easy when he reminded himself it would be a whole year before he had to look at Tibbles, Snowy, Mr. Paws, and Tufty again.**

"Harry," said Hermione in exasperation.

**"We could phone Marge," Uncle Vernon suggested.**

**"Don't be silly, Vernon, she hates the boy."**

"That feeling's mutual," said Harry, whilst Ron asked him,

"Isn't she the who you, ya know?"

"Yep," said Harry, grinning at the memory.

"What happened?" asked Sirius immediately.

"You'll have to wait till the third book," said Harry.

**The Dursleys often spoke about Harry like this, as though he wasn't there - or rather, as though he was something very nasty that couldn't understand them, like a slug.**

Many growled or muttered things under their breath.

**"What about what's-her-name, your friend - Yvonne?"**

**"On vacation in Majorca," snapped Aunt Petunia.**

**"You could just leave me here," Harry put in hopefully (he'd be able to watch what he wanted on television for a change and maybe even have a go on Dudley's computer).**

"Sadly, I don't think that's going to work, Harry," Sirius said.

**Aunt Petunia looked as though she'd just swallowed a lemon.**

"You know Forge, our next prank should be to get her to do just that," Fred whispered to George.

"Great idea, Gred," George replied quietly.

**"And come back and find the house in ruins?" she snarled.**

"As if you'd blow up the house," Hermione whispered in anger.

**"I won't blow up the house," said Harry, but they weren't listening.**

"Yeah, don't need to worry about that Harry," said Fred.

"Dad took care of that last year," George finished.

"ARTHUR! WHAT DID YOU DO?!" yelled Molly, whilst the those ho had been present at the time grinned.

"I expect it will be explained later Molly," Arthur replied, not looking into his wife's eyes.

**"I suppose we could take him to the zoo," said Aunt Petunia slowly, "... and leave him in the car..."**

"HE'S NOT AN ANIMAL!" yelled Ginny, Bill and Charlie in disgust.

**"That car's new, he's not sitting in it alone..."**

"Oh yes, just worry about the car, not about your nephew's health," Sirius said in anger.

**Dudley began to cry loudly. In fact, he wasn't really crying - it had been years since he'd really cried - but he knew that if he screwed up his face and wailed, his mother would give him anything he wanted.**

"BRAT!" echoed through the hall again.

**"Dinky Duddydums,**

Everyone looked at each other, then burst out laughing.

"Dinky Duddydums!" many said through their laughter, whilst others couldn't even speak because they were laughing so much.

This went on for a while, before Umbridge said,

"I think that is enough, now can we PLEASE get on with the reading?"

**don't cry, Mummy won't let him spoil your special day!" she cried, flinging her arms around him.**

**"I... don't... want... him... t-t-to come!" Dudley yelled between huge, pretend sobs. "He always sp-spoils everything!" He shot Harry a nasty grin through the gap in his mother's arms.**

"BRAT!" echoed through the hall for the billionth time in the single chapter.

**Just then, the doorbell rang - "Oh, good Lord, they're here!" said Aunt Petunia frantically - and a moment later, Dudley's best friend, Piers Polkiss, walked in with his mother. Piers was a scrawny boy with a face like a rat.**

"Sounds attractive," said Pavarti dryly.

**He was usually the one who held people's arms behind their backs while Dudley hit them.**

"Stupid kid," said a few.

**Dudley stopped pretending to cry at once.**

"Of course he would," said Bill in expiration.

**Half an hour later, Harry, who couldn't believe his luck, was sitting in the back of the Dursleys' car with Piers and Dudley, on the way to the zoo for the first time in his life.**

Many people shot Harry pitying looks at this. Harry shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

**His aunt and uncle hadn't been able to think of anything else to do with him, but before they'd left, Uncle Vernon had taken Harry aside.**

**"I'm warning you," he had said, putting his large purple face right up close to Harry's, "I'm warning you now, boy - any funny business, anything at all - and you'll be in that cupboard from now until Christmas."**

"WHAT?! HE WOULDN'T SERIOUSLY DO THAT, WOULD HE?!" Sirius yelled.

"Most his threats were empty threats," Harry said, but Sirius noted that he didn't look into his eyes when he said this.

"I'm not going to do anything," said Harry, "honestly..."

**But Uncle Vernon didn't believe him. No one ever did.**

A lot of people looked at him pityingly again.

_It must have been so hard for him to grow up in that environment, _McGonagall thought. _If only I had not given into Dumbledore so easily, _she thought in regret.

**The problem was, strange things often happened around Harry and it was just no good telling the Dursleys he didn't make them happen.**

"Accidental magic!" said Lee.

**Once, Aunt Petunia, tired of Harry coming back from the barbers looking as though he hadn't been at all, had taken a pair of kitchen scissors and cut his hair so short he was almost bald except for his bangs, which she left "to hide that horrible scar."**

"WHAT?! SHE'S A HORRIBLE WOMAN!" yelled many.

**Dudley had laughed himself silly at Harry, who spent a sleepless night imagining school the next day, where he was already laughed at for his baggy clothes and taped glasses.**

Cue the growls.

**Next morning, however, he had gotten up to find his hair exactly as it had been before Aunt Petunia had sheared it off.**

"Wicked, Harry!" said Fred and George, whilst others grinned and laughed that he had not had to go to school looking as was described before.

**He had been given a week in his cupboard for this,**

Everyone stopped laughing at once, and looks were replaced with those of anger.

**even though he had tried to explain that he couldn't explain how it had grown back so quickly.**

_Petunia would have known that it was accidental magic,_ Snape thought. _She saw Lily do it many times!_ Snape then felt disgusted with himself. He was on Potter's side for something, how could he?!

**Another time, Aunt Petunia had been trying to force him into a revolting old sweater of Dudley's (brown with orange puff balls).**

"Eew," said many of the girls, whilst some o the boys looked disgusted.

**The harder she tried to pull it over his head, the smaller it seemed to become, until finally it might have fitted a hand puppet, but certainly wouldn't fit Harry.**

"Shrinking things? That is some advanced magic there," said Pomona to McGonagall.

"Yes, especially because he didn't have a wand then," said McGonagall in amazement.

**Aunt Petunia had decided it must have shrunk in the wash and, to his great relief, Harry wasn't punished.**

"Good," said many.

**On the other hand, he'd gotten into terrible trouble for being found on the roof of the school kitchens.**

"What!" questioned a few.

**Dudley's gang had been chasing him as usual when, as much to Harry's surprise as anyone else's, there he was sitting on the chimney.**

"You apparated!" yelled Colin, whilst others looked at him in shock.

"No, I think I flew, actually," said Harry.

"That would make sense," said Remus. " I remember Lily telling me she did the same thing before she came to Hogwarts." Harry grinned at this new information and link to his parents.

**The Dursleys had received a very angry letter from Harry's headmistress telling them Harry had been climbing school buildings. But all he'd tried to do (as he shouted at Uncle Vernon through the locked door of his cupboard) was jump behind the big trash cans outside the kitchen doors. Harry supposed that the wind must have caught him in mid-jump.**

"Really, Harry?" said Hermione.

**But today, nothing was going to go wrong. It was even worth being with Dudley and Piers to be spending the day somewhere that wasn't school, his cupboard, or Mrs. Figg's cabbage-smelling living room.**

**While he drove, Uncle Vernon complained to Aunt Petunia. He liked to complain about things: people at work, Harry, the council, Harry, the bank, and Harry were just a few of his favorite subjects.**

"You know Harry, I think your Uncle really likes you," said George seriously, and many laughed.

**This morning, it was motorcycles.**

**"... roaring along like maniacs, the young hoodlums," he said, as a motorcycle overtook them.**

**"I had a dream about a motorcycle," said Harry, remembering suddenly. "It was flying."**

"Why'd you tell him that? It figures that he'd get angry," said a few. Harry looked sheepish.

**Uncle Vernon nearly crashed into the car in front. He turned right around in his seat and yelled at Harry, his face like a gigantic beet with a mustache: "MOTORCYCLES DON'T FLY!"**

"YES THEY DO!" yelled Sirius, Fred, George and Lee.

**Dudley and Piers sniggered.**

**"I know they don't," said Harry. "It was only a dream."**

"It was a memory," said Ron.

"I know," said Harry in annoyance.

**But he wished he hadn't said anything. If there was one thing the Dursleys hated even more than his asking questions, it was his talking about anything acting in a way it shouldn't, no matter if it was in a dream or even a cartoon - they seemed to think he might get dangerous ideas.**

"I think we should find out what a cartoon is and get ideas from it," Fred said to George. Molly glared at them.

**It was a very sunny Saturday and the zoo was crowded with families. The Dursleys bought Dudley and Piers large chocolate ice creams at the entrance and then, because the smiling lady in the van had asked Harry what he wanted before they could hurry him away, they bought him a cheap lemon ice pop.**

Many growled in anger again.

**It wasn't bad, either, Harry thought, licking it as they watched a gorilla scratching its head who looked remarkably like Dudley, except that it wasn't blond.**

The hall erupted into laughter again.

"Harry, why aren't you this funny at school?" questioned Fred.

"I'm very disappointed in you, Harry," Sirius said.

"Why?" asked Harry.

"Because you just insulted Gorillas in a very big way," Sirius said. The hall laughed again.

**Harry had the best morning he'd had in a long time. He was careful to walk a little way apart from the Dursleys so that Dudley and Piers, who were starting to get bored with the animals by lunchtime, wouldn't fall back on their favorite hobby of hitting him.**

Many frowned.

**They ate in the zoo restaurant, and when Dudley had a tantrum because his knickerbocker glory didn't have enough ice cream on top,**

"BRAT!" yelled the hall.

**Uncle Vernon bought him another one and Harry was allowed to finish the first.**

**Harry felt, afterward, that he should have known it was all too good to last.**

"Yeah, I should have known," said Harry.

**After lunch they went to the reptile house. It was cool and dark in there, with lit windows all along the walls. Behind the glass, all sorts of lizards and snakes were crawling and slithering over bits of wood and stone. Dudley and Piers wanted to see huge, poisonous cobras and thick, man-crushing pythons. Dudley quickly found the largest snake in the place. It could have wrapped its body twice around Uncle Vernon's car and crushed it into a trash can**

"But it wouldn't have been able to get around Uncle Vernon himself," said Harry, and the hall laughed.

"You can be funny, do this more often!" said George.

**- but at the moment it didn't look in the mood. In fact, it was fast asleep.**

**Dudley stood with his nose pressed against the glass, staring at the glistening brown coils.**

**"Make it move," he whined at his father. Uncle Vernon tapped on the glass, but the snake didn't budge.**

**"Do it again," Dudley ordered. Uncle Vernon rapped the glass smartly with his knuckles, but the snake just snoozed on.**

**"This is boring," Dudley moaned. He shuffled away.**

**Harry moved in front of the tank and looked intently at the snake. He wouldn't have been surprised if it had died of boredom itself - no company except stupid people drumming their fingers on the glass trying to disturb it all day long. It was worse than having a cupboard as a bedroom, where the only visitor was Aunt Petunia hammering on the door to wake you up; at least he got to visit the rest of the house.**

_If only I'd got out of Azkaban as soon as I arrived!_ Sirius thought in anger. _I would have been able to rescue him from there!_

**The snake suddenly opened its beady eyes. Slowly, very slowly, it raised its head until its eyes were on a level with Harry's.**

**It winked.**

"Snakes can't wink, Harry," said Hermione.

"This one did, Hermione," Harry replied.

**Harry stared. Then he looked quickly around to see if anyone was watching. They weren't. He looked back at the snake and winked, too.**

"What were you doing?" questioned a few. Harry shrugged.

**The snake jerked its head toward Uncle Vernon and Dudley, then raised its eyes to the ceiling. It gave Harry a look that said quite plainly:**

**"I get that all the time."**

**"I know," Harry murmured through the glass, though he wasn't sure the snake could hear him. "It must be really annoying."**

**The snake nodded vigorously.**

"WHAT?! IT COULD UNDERSTAND YOU! THAT MEANS YOUR PARSELMOUTH!" yelled a first year Ravenclaw. Those who didn't know looked fearful.

**"Where do you come from, anyway?" Harry asked.**

**The snake jabbed its tail at a little sign next to the glass. Harry peered at it.**

"Didin't you think it was odd that a snake was answered your questions, Harry?" asked Hermione.

"I didn't really think about it. I just wanted a friend," Harry said. Many looked at him pityingly again.

**Boa Constrictor, Brazil.**

**"Was it nice there?"**

**The boa constrictor jabbed its tail at the sign again and Harry read on: This specimen was bred in the zoo. "Oh, I see - so you've never been to Brazil?"**

**As the snake shook its head, a deafening shout behind Harry made both of them jump. "DUDLEY! MR. DURSLEY! COME AND LOOK AT THIS SNAKE! YOU WON'T BELIEVE WHAT IT'S DOING!"**

**Dudley came waddling toward them as fast as he could.**

"It's the only way he can walk," said Harry, and many laughed again.

**"Out of the way, you," he said, punching Harry in the ribs. Caught by surprise, Harry fell hard on the concrete floor.**

Many growled. If they could get their hands on Dudley...

**What came next happened so fast no one saw how it happened - one second, Piers and Dudley were leaning right up close to the glass, the next, they had leapt back with howls of horror.**

"What did you do?" asked Charlie.

"Wait for it," said Harry.

**Harry sat up and gasped; the glass front of the boa constrictor's tank had vanished.**

"WICKED HARRY!" said Lee, while the hall laughed.

"Best prank ever!" yelled Fred and George.

**The great snake was uncoiling itself rapidly, slithering out onto the floor. People throughout the reptile house screamed and started running for the exits.**

**As the snake slid swiftly past him, Harry could have sworn a low, hissing voice said, "Brazil, here I come... Thanksss, amigo."**

"What do you know, it's polite," said Michael Corner of Ravenclaw.

**The keeper of the reptile house was in shock.**

**"But the glass," he kept saying, "where did the glass go?"**

"Harry made it vanish," Fred, George and Lee sang.

**The zoo director himself made Aunt Petunia a cup of strong, sweet tea while he apologized over and over again. Piers and Dudley could only gibber. As far as Harry had seen, the snake hadn't done anything except snap playfully at their heels as it passed, but by the time they were all back in Uncle Vernon's car, Dudley was telling them how it had nearly bitten off his leg, while Piers was swearing it had tried to squeeze him to death.**

"Of course you would," said Ginny.

**But worst of all, for Harry at least, was Piers calming down enough to say, "Harry was talking to it, weren't you, Harry?"**

"HOW DARE HE?!" yelled Sirius.

**Uncle Vernon waited until Piers was safely out of the house before starting on Harry. He was so angry he could hardly speak. He managed to say, "Go - cupboard - stay - no meals,"**

"WHAT?! NO FOOD?! HOW DID YOU SURVIVE?!" yelled Sirius.

"I snuck out at night," Harry said quietly.

**before he collapsed into a chair, and Aunt Petunia had to run and get him a large brandy.**

**Harry lay in his dark cupboard much later, wishing he had a watch. He didn't know what time it was and he couldn't be sure the Dursleys were asleep yet. Until they were, he couldn't risk sneaking to the kitchen for some food.**

"Well, you are like your Father. He used to always sneak off to the Kitchens at night for food when he was here," said Sirius quietly to Harry.

**He'd lived with the Dursleys almost ten years, ten miserable years, as long as he could remember, ever since he'd been a baby and his parents had died in that car crash. He couldn't remember being in the car when his parents had died.**

"Because that didn't really happen," said Remus.

**Sometimes, when he strained his memory during long hours in his cupboard, he came up with a strange vision: a blinding flash of green light and a burning pain on his forehead.**

Everyone looked shocked. _No-one should have to remember that,_ everyone thought.

**This, he supposed, was the crash, though he couldn't imagine where all the green light came from. He couldn't remember his parents at all. His aunt and uncle never spoke about them, and of course he was forbidden to ask questions. There were no photographs of them in the house.**

_I'm gonna KILL them! _Sirius thought in anger.

**When he had been younger, Harry had dreamed and dreamed of some unknown relation coming to take him away, but it had never happened;**

"I'm sorry Harry. I tried, but the Ministry wouldn't allow a Werewolf to take care of you," Remus said in sorrow. At this, many said glares towards the Minister.

**the Dursleys were his only family. Yet sometimes he thought (or maybe hoped) that strangers in the street seemed to know him. Very strange strangers they were, too.**

"Wizards and Witches, actually," Arthur brightly.

**A tiny man in a violet top hat had bowed to him once while out shopping with Aunt Petunia and Dudley. After asking Harry furiously if he knew the man, Aunt Petunia had rushed them out of the shop without buying anything. A wild-looking old woman dressed all in green had waved merrily at him once on a bus. A bald man in a very long purple coat had actually shaken his hand in the street the other day and then walked away without a word. The weirdest thing about all these people was the way they seemed to vanish the second Harry tried to get a closer look.**

"They obviously Apparated," said Charlie.

**At school, Harry had no one. Everybody knew that Dudley's gang hated that odd Harry Potter in his baggy old clothes and broken glasses, and nobody liked to disagree with Dudley's gang.**

Everyone looked angry at this. Kingsley held up the book and said,

"Well that's the second chapter done. Who wants to read next?"

"I will," said Remus. He walked up, took the book out of Kingsley's hands, and opened his outh to read,

**The Letters from No-one.**


End file.
